The March of the Barrow-king.

March of the Barrow-king

'Let rain quench the thirsty, 

Let winds rouse the weary, 

Let thunder be our war horn, 

And lightning our sigil be.' 

~ War-chant of the Storm-sworn

Ages ago, back when the icy northlands of Altreach were still joined to the great isle by Daeron's bridge, the Vardic people of Altreach were ruled by High-King Weard Storm-sworn. In those days the High-king ruled the northern mountains of 'Ysenmir's brow' and the green southern coasts from the great city of Tiragarde. Weard's father had been a great king, Yullr Storm-sworn had fought back the clans of Giants and Trolls that nestled in the mountain passes. He had also established great trade routes to the different lesser steadings upon the lands. For this his father became known in the lore of the north as 'Yullr the giver'. Greater still was Weard's father's father, Grenn Storm sworn, who united the various clans of Altreach into one unified force in the age of the black sun, and liberated the north from the control of the black legions (as followed the rest of the Great Isle of Galtea). In fact, great kings were found within Weard's entire heritage; all the way back to Daeron the seeker who travelled south across the land bridges to found the realms of Beledor.

Not every man can be great though. Not every king can be a legend. Indeed, just as Yullr, Grenn and Dareon were loved, Weard was hated. Weard is known in history as 'the dread' or 'the unforgiven' and many common folk have taken to name him for his most grievous sin, 'Weard Kinslayer', For Weard had a brother in childhood, Larren. Larren was his younger by a few years. Yet he was by far the better warrior, as sure of foot as a gazelle and as strong of arm as a great bear. No other man was as skilled at swordplay, or at the art of the spear. When armed with a shield he was as a stone wall to his enemies, and when armed with an axe he surged upon them as a tide. Yet he was also fair of appearance, strongly built like his father and with a rich mane of flowing red hair. He spoke with a kindness and warmth to poor and rich alike. So amiable was Larren that his father would oft send him disguised into the streets to talk to the commoners about grievances with the lands, or ills that plagued them. At the end of the day Larren would report faithfully to his father, relaying his thoughts on the matters so as to help Yullr better rule his people. He was much loved by all.

Weard received no such love from his people. From early on he was cruel and spiteful to those he considered lesser than him. His eyes held acidous venom wherever he chose to turn his gaze. His words he spat from a sharp tongue. Such cruel japes and sneers that cut so harsh and deep that they made him more enemies than friends. To those he may have scarcely called 'companions' he was a person to be feared, for his temper was vicious. He once had a boy's fingers broken for speaking out of turn. In battle, though he was cunning and ruthless, he gained the ire of his fellow men for using underhanded tactics and deception. In Vardic culture such things were considered craven and unworthy of glory. The only weapons Weard seemed skilled at were the dagger and the bow. Perfect weapons, it was considered, for killing your foes from far away (though Larren instead was praised for his skill with the bow as a huntsman). Indeed the only flaw that Larren seemed to have was an unerring love of his elder brother, to his own ruin.

Eventually the love the people bore his brother and the scorn they bestowed upon him grew too much for Weard. Jealousy like a serpent coiled around his mind and sunk its fangs deep into his intentions. Yet for the most part he was intent to let the peoples love for Larren lie, it did not affect his claim to power after all. However, it was on the eve of his father's sixty first name-day that Weard overheard Yullr's plans to leave the kingdom to Larren in the event of his death. When confronted about this Yullr scolded his son for speaking out of turn, and told him that the lives of so many subjects, indeed the balance of the realm, should not be influenced by such a greedy and cruel king. Larren only smiled and told Weard that he would only be looking after the realm until his beloved brother grew out of his malignant ways.